Working title: Damaged
by Virgo girl 14
Summary: Disclaimer: No I don't own any of the characters in Waterloo Road, they do of course belong to the BBC and Waterloo Road's creators
1. Leaving Home

**Damaged**

**Summary: **Small insights to Bex's life, before, during and after she disappeared and came back. In later chapters, there is no Finn/Sam, cause, while they may be cute, Finn/Bex is also cute :) x hope you enjoy**  
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1.

Sixteen-year-old Bex Fisher was sat in her room with her music playing loudly in her ears, trying to block out her parents' arguing.

Jess had come into her room moments before snapping that it was her fault and that they might be happier without her.

Bex found that hard to take, given that she and her sister had once been inseparable.

She hadn't heard the footsteps thundering up the stairs. Maybe if she had, she might have had time to put her desk chair under the door handle. She jumped up when she saw the door burst open and she ripped her earphones from her ears. "What are you doing?" she screamed.

"When will you stop being such a disappointment! When will you actually stop being so bloody selfish and listen to your mother?" Charlie Fisher raged.

"How am I a disappointment? I'm top in all my subjects except science, and that's because it doesn't interest me! And I do listen to her!" Bex shot back at him.

"You don't listen and you think everything has to be about you!" Charlie carried on, Karen appeared behind him.

"Charlie just leave it. Come on, you're going to wake the other kids up with all this shouting." Karen tried to reason, but Charlie was having none of it.

"No, Karen! You've been too soft on her! You say you keep pushing her but you don't! You don't even know her boyfriend's name!"

"No she hasn't!" Bex jumped in to defend her. "And she does know actually."

Charlie turned to his wife. "Well?"

In truth, Karen didn't know.

"Dylan." Bex mouthed over her father's shoulder.

Karen read her lips and looked at Charlie. "Dylan." She repeated.

"Oh yeah? What does this 'Dylan' do then?" it was quite clear that Charlie didn't believe them.

This stopped Bex dead. She couldn't very well tell him that her boyfriend would readily film them during intimate moments in bed, and he was a professional photographer for a lads' mag, and nearing twice her age.

"He's at college." Bex lied. "Studying photography and media."

"How old is he?"

"Eighteen." Bex answered.

"See, there's nothing to worry about." Said, Karen, acting like she'd known all along. "Come on, let's get to bed."

"I have a mock exam I need to sleep and revise for." Bex added.

"I'd like to meet him." Charlie looked at her.

"And have you warn him off? No thanks!" Bex answered back.

Nobody, not even he himself knew what made him do it, but he snapped, needing a way to shut her up, he launched himself at his oldest daughter, face contorted with rage and fist raised to hit her.

Bex leapt backward off her bed and pressed herself against the wall, for the first time in her life, scared of her own father.

Karen got between them, shouting for him to stop, and she pushed him away from her child.

Neither knew how she did it, considering Charlie was a lot heavier and stronger than her and could have easily shoved her aside, but there was nothing she would not do to protect her children from any harm that may come to them, and somehow within her, she found the strength to physically push him away.

"Don't you dare touch her! Get out! Go on, get out of this house right now!" Karen ordered.

Charlie looked at them both for a moment before slinking from the room, down the stairs and out of the house, leaving a visibly shaken and terrified Bex and a fuming Karen behind.

"Bex, darling." Karen said gently, hugging her daughter.

Bex was too numb to even register her mother speaking, let alone feel her arms around her. Her own father, the man who doted on her, Jess and Harry, had raised his hand to physically harm her for the first time in her entire life. "Mum… please I just want to be left alone…"

Instinct told Karen not to leave Bex while she was in this state.

"Please mum… I'll come down in 5 minutes to tell you I'm going to bed."

Karen looked at her daughter, thinking for a moment before nodding. "Alright. Five minutes." She said, kissing her on the forehead and left the room.

Bex quickly reached for her phone on her bed, and texted Dylan.

"_Really need to get away from here. Can I come round yours for a bit? B x." _

Within a minute, her phone vibrated in her hands and she looked at it, opening the message.

"_Give me 15 minutes I'll wait for you round the corner. H x."_

Bex nodded, though he couldn't see her, and she grabbed a small bag, packing a few overnight things in, intending to stay for the night. How wrong she would be.

Bex quickly dressed for bed under the pretence of going to bed as she had told Karen, and she walked out of her room just as Karen was coming up the stairs.

"I've decided I'm not going to wait for your father to come home, I'm just going up to bed, darling. Don't worry about him, I'm sure he didn't mean it."

Bex only nodded. "Okay…. Night mum… love you…"

"Love you too, darling." Karen smiled and went to check on Jess and Harry before going to bed.

Bex walked back into her room, quickly dressed back into the clothes she'd worn that day, white t-shirt, black jeans and pink hooded jumper, and she put her favourite blue scarf around her neck, collected her bag and crept out of her room, down the stairs and out of the house, fully expecting to be back by morning. She made her way down the street and turned the corner to the familiar car of Dylan's.

"You look stressed, babe." Dylan spoke smoothly once she was in the car and he was driving her away from her home.

"Just family issues… nothing to worry about really…" Bex sighed smiling.

"I might be able to help ya." He told her, trying to coax it out of her. He always won in the end. Say all the right things, cuddle at the right moment and she was his to do with whatever he wished.

Soon they pulled up in the car park and they got out, walking up to his flat.

Bex went and sat in the sitting room and waited as Dylan went into the kitchen area to get them both a glass of wine, and he walked over to her, handing her a glass while he barely touched his own.

They spent the night talking, sat in each other's arms, until Bex looked over at the clock which was sat on top of the TV, and it read 3:00 AM. She got up, stretching a little. "I should really go back home before they noticed I've gone." She said.

"Okay." Dylan said and he got up, walking over to the door before he stopped her.

"Babe you know I've got this job? Well the boss wants to move me to London. Says I could get some real good shots down there."

"Oh?" Bex was surprised. "Why? When do you go?"

"Cause he's sending me there." He answered. "Tomorrow. I want you to come with me. Tonight."

"Tonight?" the prospect of somewhere new prickled at Bex's natural curiosity. But she couldn't just leave her family. "I can't… I can't just leave them."

"If you don't then I'll show mummy and daddy just what a little slapper you are. Those videos of us together?" Dylan snapped harshly.

Bex looked at him, horrified that he would threaten to do such a thing, and then a mixture of disgust and humiliation at the thought of her doing that. She hated herself for that, and she definitely didn't want her family to see her like that.

"Your dad's already gone to hit you tonight. Mummy might not want to be so quick on her feet once they see those videos."

"Alright! I'll go! Just please don't show them…" Bex pleaded.

Dylan just smiled and kissed her. "C'mon let's go." He said and dragged her into the dead of night away from her friends and family and no way of contacting them for the next twelve to eighteen months.


	2. A whole lifetime away

2.

For the most of twelve months, Bex had got used to her life in London with her-what she thought was loving-boyfriend and he often showered her with gifts and compliments, took her to all the best parties around. If she was honest with herself, she was having the time of her life. She had no idea of the truth about where he was really getting all the money for their lavish lifestyle from. When questioned, Dylan would often fob her off with some excuse of "a good day at the shoot" with some A-List client, and nothing more was said.

That was until the day he'd forgotten to lock away his laptop before he left for work, leaving Bex to her own devices.

Bex was that bored, she'd decided it was time to have a proper clean-up of their flat, just because there was nothing else to do.

She entered their bedroom to begin cleaning up when she noticed the laptop still switched on and the camcorder connected to it. Again her natural curiosity kicked in, and she found herself walking over to the laptop to check what it was doing still on, only to wish that she hadn't. Videos of her, some of which she didn't even remember the camera being in the room, but all of them contained her being provocative for him, performing for him, and to top it off, he'd been posting the videos online for the entire world to see.

"Oh my god…" she muttered, and felt bile stinging her throat, and made it to the bathroom with barely enough time to throw up into the toilet.

She sat on the cool, tiled floor, resting her now warm and clammy back against the cold relief of the tiled wall. "All this time he was using me…" she realised sickeningly.

Bex jumped when she heard the door to the flat open and her name being called. Shakily she got to her feet, using the edge of the sink as leverage, turning the cold tap on, splashing her face with the water and then dabbed her face dry with a nearby hand towel. "I'm in here…" she called.

There was a silent few seconds and then a knock at the door.

"Come in…" she muttered.

The door opened. "You alright?" Dylan asked.

Bex gave a slight nod, not trusting herself with any other movement. "I just feel sick that's all… might go for a lie down."

Dylan looked at her. "Well, let me just move the wo-"

"No it's fine…" she cut across him. "I'll lie on the sofa." She added. There was no way she was going back in that room tonight, not if she could help it.

"If you're sure?" he looked at her again, making sure.

"Yeah… I'll need a quick route to the bathroom if I'm sick again." She lied, and with that, Dylan left her, even for the whole night, he didn't come out of the bedroom unless it was to use the bathroom or get himself a drink.

All the while, Bex was planning her escape. Risky as it was, she desperately wanted hugs and the safety of her family.

The next morning, Bex woke to a tray of breakfast and a cup of tea being placed on the coffee table in front of her, and she looked up into the smiling face of the man she was supposed to love, the man who was supposed to love her, and she had to force herself to smile back, wondering how he could act like everything was normal.

'_How do you do it…?_' she thought to herself. '_How can you act like this is all normal for us…?_'

"Bex?"

She looked up again when he spoke her name. Before she could stop herself, she asked; "How can you act normal with what we're doing?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You. I was cleaning up yesterday, and I saw the laptop on, full of videos of me and you…"

Dylan looked pissed off for a moment wondering why she couldn't just forget about it, but he quickly covered himself. "Well…" he started.

"Have you turned me into some kind of porn star?" she demanded, pushing herself into a sitting position.

"You have fun don't you? I don't get what the big deal is, you were fine with me filming before you knew." He spoke.

"That's not the point! You're using me! Using me to make money!" she snapped. "I'm going home. Today."

"And when they ask where you've been, how you've survived on the streets for near on a year with no grades to get a job, what will you tell them? There's only three places you'd be without me, Bex, in some brothel somewhere, on the streets as a prozzie or in a crack den. And they know it, so do you. Face it, Bex, you're stuck with me, so you'd better get used to it." He told her.

Bex sighed, defeated, her shoulders slumped downward. He was right, and she hated it.

"If you run, Bex, I'll find you. You're mine and I'll never give up on you, not even in death." He threatened before standing up and walking out of the flat, locking the door behind him.

Despite the threat, it didn't stop Bex thinking and planning her escape back home. Through burning tears she picked up the plate and cup, taking it to the kitchen, throwing the tea down the sink and the breakfast in the bin. She wasn't up to eating what he'd cooked for her. One thing was for sure, she didn't move off the sofa all day, she wasn't going to do anymore tidying up as long as she stayed in the flat.

Later that night, Bex was sat in the bedroom with music playing loudly. She was getting ready for another performance he'd begged her into. Every second she spent putting make up on and sorting her hair out repulsed her now she knew what she was doing.

She looked up to find Dylan had gone out of the room, and knew she only had a minimal amount of time, she quickly took her phone from inside the pillow case and called home. She sighed softly when she heard her mother's soft, soothing voice the other end of the phone. She wanted to speak, but she couldn't. She stayed there for a few more seconds before hanging up, and quickly hid the phone again before Dylan came back with a pink and black corset and stockings.

He threw them toward her. "Put them on." He told her, before walking out of the room again to get the laptop set up so once the video was done he could easily post it.

Bex shuddered and bit her lip, gathering up her courage and took the items in her hands and got dressed, not really wanting to do it. If she could get through this and make him believe she enjoyed it, she knew she was a step on the way to being one hell of a good actress.


	3. Uncertainty

3.

Bex was sat in her bedroom, back in her home, feeling safe for the first time in almost two years.

She had been back for three days, her belongings had been brought down from the loft the day before and she helped her mother put things back where, at least they thought, they belonged.

Bex jumped when she heard her door open, and looked visibly relieved to see her sister Jess.

"Bex…?" Jess said softly.

"Yeah?" Bex answered, standing up from her bed.

"I'm sorry… for the stuff I said before you left…" Jess said quietly, she'd been blaming herself the whole time, thinking that was why her older sister left them.

Bex gave her a faint smile. If she was honest with herself, which she usually was, she'd forgotten about it at the only thing that she remembered from that night was her dad going to hit her. "It's fine, I forgave you even right after you said it, I knew you never meant it."

Both sisters smiled at one another and hugged each other.

"I'm going to meet Vicki in a bit; we're going into town to do some last minute Christmas shopping. Feel up to coming with us?" Jess offered.

"No…" Bex answered. She was still nervous about going outside, in case Dylan had followed her. He did say that he wasn't going to give up on her. And as she thought about it she started to feel guilty for putting her family in the danger that would most likely come.

"Are you sure? Might do you some good to get out? You ain't left the house since you came back."

"I just don't feel ready yet..." Bex mumbled.

Jess knew something had happened, something had changed her sister while she was away and it worried her. But she knew she couldn't push her. "Okay." Jess nodded, releasing her sister and walking out.

An hour later, Karen walked up the stairs to Bex's room with a mug of hot chocolate and a DVD in her hands. "Here you are, love. Want to come down and watch this with me? It used to be your favourite."

Bex took the mug in her hands with a small smile and saw her mother holding '_Sister Act_' in her hand. "Yeah, I'd like that." She nodded, and let her mum lead her out of the room and down the stairs into the living room where Karen got the DVD ready.

"Are you ready to talk about what happened while you were away?" Karen asked gently, watching her daughter close the curtains and take her seat beside her on the sofa.

Bex shook her head. "Please, mum I just want to forget about it." She pleaded, hoping she would take the hint.

Karen looked at Bex, she knew that storing everything up inside and hoping to forget never worked and was never healthy, and it would only make matters worse in the long run. But then she also worried that if she pushed her daughter for answers she might lose her again.

"Alright, love. I'm going to need you to come with me tomorrow. We have to go to the school because I have a meeting with the LEA about next term's plans. I also want to enrol you at the school on the same day and get your uniform."

Bex nodded, saying nothing else as the film started, sat there in her mother's arms.


	4. Friends stick together

4.

"We were right to be wary then..." Vicki sighed, hugging Jess and put a hand on Bex's arm.

After the ordeal both girls had gone through which lead to the eventual capture of Bex's tormentor, Vicki figured they needed friends around, which included Finn Sharkey and Ronan Burley.

The three girls were sat around the kitchen table in the Fisher's home. Ronan and Finn were both standing by the kitchen door, listening to them. They had both wanted to find the scumbag and kill him themselves for what he did, but Vicki, as the voice of reason stopped them, telling them both not to go down to his level, and that Bex and Jess needed their friends around them. But that didn't stop them killing them countless times in their heads. Each time his death was something different.

"I should have known he'd do something like this... I could have stopped all this from happening very easily..." Bex muttered.

"Staying away wasn't the easy way..." Jess said quietly.

"You couldn't have known what he'd do." Ronan spoke for the first time in a while.

"Yeah, for all you know he might have gone for Jess, regardless what you did for him." Finn added.

"Maybe... but sadly I do know him..." Bex looked at them. Over time at being at Waterloo Road, she had started to build her confidence back up again and learnt to start trusting the male population again, even if she was taking it one step at a time and the only men she trusted were Ronan, Finn, Josh, Jonah and her teachers.

"Yeah, and he's locked up for now. When the court date comes through there's no way the judge is going to let him off. He'll get banged up for good." Finn stepped forward to the table and placed his hands on it, looking at the 3 girls. "Come on, you know I'm right."

Bex continued to look at him. "Why do you have to speak sense? Why couldn't you talk a load of crap like him over there." She smiled.

"Oi!" Ronan laughed.

"Yeah, who gave you the maturity pill?" Jess teased lightly.

"I'll have you know I'm a changed man. I ain't the annoying sod I used to be." Finn smirked, walking around the table and hugging Bex.

"Hm... you're just irritating instead." Bex teased, provoking him to gently prod her in the side, causing her to laugh.

"On a serious note... once a date's set, I'm coming with ya." Vicki said.

"So are us two." Ronan said. "And don't come the crap of you don't want us to hear cause we've seen it, along with the entire school. And as your friends, you're not going through this without us."

"If you say no, we're going with you anyway." Vicki said.

The sisters looked at each other and smiled.

"There's no getting rid of you now, is there." Bex said.

"Nope." Finn smirked, and once the seriousness was over, the five of them started joking around and acting like they didn't have a care in the world.


	5. Justice

**A/N: **I'm no courtroom expert, but I have watched a lot of CSI, Silent Witness and all that stuff so... I hope I've got it all sort of true of not all of it.. enjoy xx**  
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5.

"You don't have to do this. You don't need to face him, hear me tell an entire room of strangers all the stuff he's done..." Bex tried for the final time, looking at Finn as the pair of them stood in the living room.

"Look, you. Shut up panicking, yeah?" Finn looked at her, smiling to show he wasn't angry. "I said I'd come with you for support. I ain't going anywhere." He added and hugged her.

Bex hugged back, giving in, even if she was going to hate having to go into detail with him and the others there.

"Bex? Finn? Come on, the others are waiting in the car." Karen said, standing in the doorway and smiling at them both.

Reluctantly Bex stepped out of the embrace, and Finn kept his arm around her as they walked out to the car that would take them to the court for the trial.

Once there, Vicki, Ronan and Jess were all made to enter the courtroom and take their seats. Finn remained outside with Karen and Bex.

"If I go in there without her, nothing and no one will stop me wanting to go over and make him pay for what he did to her." Finn snapped at the older male that was trying to persuade him to leave Bex's side.

"He'll be fine with us." Karen said, and the male left them to it.

Every passing second Bex had to wait felt like an hour. She sat there nervously between Finn and her mother, playing with her fingers in her lap.

"How long have we been sat here?" she asked eventually.

"Five minutes, darling." Karen said gently.

"Feels like longer..."

"It will do, love." Karen hugged her.

"I just want all this to be over..."

"After today it will be." Finn said.

"No it won't... trial might be over, he might get banged up... But it's all up here, still reminding me every day..." she tapped her temple with her fingers.

"And there are people out there that can help you make sense of it, help you put it to the back of your mind and eventually forget enough to move on with your life." Karen said softly.

"It might help." Finn shrugged.

Bex looked at him, smiling a little, leaning against her mother and she held his hand.

"Rebecca Fisher?" a woman called after another twenty minutes, standing outside of the courtroom door.

Bex looked up as her name was called, her stomach sinking to her feet and a feeling of dread clutched at her as she forced herself to stand, Karen and Finn standing with her and the three of them walked into the room for her to give her evidence.

The whole time Bex spoke and answered questions put to her, she kept her eyes on her mother, Jess and her friends. She took in each change in their facial expressions as she forced herself to go into detail of everything. She could see Finn and Ronan both barely holding themselves together to stop themselves launching at Dylan, who stood to the left of her. Vicki and Jess were both in tears, neither believing what they were hearing but knew it was the truth, and Karen was only just holding it together for everyone, even though she looked as though she wanted to take Bex into her arms and shield her from what other dangers lay in front of them.

She could feel Dylan glaring at her as she spoke, and was ninety-nine percent sure that if she looked over at him she would close up and wouldn't say anymore. She was scared of him, but time at home, time with new people made her see that she wasn't going to let him ruin her chances of doing well at Waterloo Road and hopefully getting into uni. Hell even Finn would damn make sure of it if she couldn't do it.

Then the woman questioning her asked her about her relationship with Finn, and Bex looked directly at her.

"I'm sorry, but what do my friendships have to do with my case against my abuser?" Bex questioned.

"It strikes me as strange that if Dylan Hodge, the scary, angry, abusive and controlling man has scared you so much, ground you into the dirt, why would your first friend at your new school be a boy?" the woman spoke.

"My first friend at Waterloo Road was Vicki McDonald." Bex answered. "And I've gotten to know both Finn and Ronan before I became friends with them. They showed me that not every bloke is like that piece of scum to the left of me. But my friendships at school have nothing to do with this as I knew them after I met Dylan, not before."

"I believe Miss Fisher is right. Do you have anymore questions in relation to the case alone?" the judge stepped in.

The woman shook her head. "No more questions, Your Honour." She answered and took her seat.

"Miss Fisher you may step down. Court will adjourn for a twenty minute break and then the jury will make their decision." The judge said.

Bex sighed in relief as she stepped down from the stand, walking over to her friends and family who were already standing and waiting for her.

"I think you handled that wonderfully, darling." Karen said softly, hugging both of her daughters before all six of them walked out of the courtroom.

"So where are we going now? I'm starving." Ronan piped up.

"Actually I kind of need the loo." Vicki said and looked at Bex and Jess. "You two come with?"

"Yeah sure." Jess nodded and the three girls walked off on search of the girls' toilets.

"What is it with girls going to the toilet together..." Finn muttered.

"I don't know, mate... Maybe that should be one of my get-rich-quick schemes. Find out what goes on inside a woman's mind." Ronan laughed.

"Good luck with that one, Mr Burley." Karen remarked with a smirk.

Both boys just laughed, but soon stopped when they saw Dylan walk out of the court room accompanied by police officers.

'_There goes my appetite..._' Ronan thought.

Karen followed their gaze and put her hands on both of their shoulders. "Come on, boys. He's not worth you getting into trouble over."

"But Miss, how can you stand there so calm?" Finn glared at the man in front of him.

"Believe me, Finn. I want nothing more than to kill him with my own bare hands for what he did to my girls. But both girls need their mum and it won't do Bex any good to know you're banged up while he gets the easy way out." Karen said, deliberately mentioning Bex's name to get him to see sense, even though she didn't believe her own words. "Come on, let's go and find them."

Finn and Ronan both nodded and allowed Karen to turn them away in the opposite direction and they started to walk.

Finn maybe younger than Bex, but Karen could see how close they had both become. She had seen him mature before her eyes during her time as head teacher, and seen how he had voluntarily given himself the role on looking out for Denzil with Sam.

By the time they had found the girls, got something to eat and made their way back it was time for them to go back inside.

Once inside everyone took their seats.

"Could a member of the jury please stand." The judge said.

From the jury, a young dark haired woman stood.

"Hove you and the jury reached a verdict?"

"We have, Your Honour. We find Dylan Hodge guilty on all counts." The woman spoke.

Bex, who had been tense the whole time, had visibly slumped down against Finn, like a weight had been lifted from her.

Finn just grinned and hugged her.

Karen smiled at them both and hugged Jess to her.

Vicki and Ronan could barely contain their happiness.

"Mr Dylan Hodge, you have been found guilty on all counts of rape, abduction, child abuse and possession of child pornography. You are sentenced to at least twelve years imprisonment with no hope of bail or probation. If you do get released you will not, by law, be allowed anywhere near Miss Fisher or her family and will be relocated to where you will not be able to reach them." The judge ruled.

Vicki, Jess and Ronan all cheered, Bex was too numb to understand and take it all in, but she couldn't stop smiling up at Finn.

"You did it." He grinned.

"I couldn't have gone through all this without any of you." Bex smiled, looking around her.

"I think you did brilliant, babe." Finn said, and kissed her softly.

Bex didn't even flinch or push him away, she allowed him to kiss her.

And that was the final image Dylan saw of Bex before taken down into the cells, away from civilization for a long time.

"'Bout bloody time!" Jess laughed, standing up with Karen, who couldn't deny that she agreed with her.

Bex pulled away and both of them stood. "Oh, shut it!" she smirked and they all made their way out of the courtroom.

"If we hurry we can get back to school in time for final period." Karen smirked.

"Can't we just go home, Miss?" Ronan complained.

"No you cannot! Now come on." Karen laughed, piling everyone into the car before getting in herself and driving them all away.


	6. Just another day

6.

"You know it should be Kyle up there today." Bex smirked as she walked through the school corridors with Finn.

"Yeah, but no one would wanna see him, he's crap, can't do it right." Finn said cockily.

"And I suppose you can, then?"

"Course. You're still coming to watch ain't ya?" he grinned

"After we get our results and first lesson." Bex nodded.

"Yeah, then you'll be leaving us. Waterloo Road not good enough for you anymore?" Finn teased.

"Not when I've been offered a free place at Manchester Uni to do drama, no." Bex smirked.

"Leaving me." Finn pouted.

"Awh. Yeah but I'll be back nearly every weekend and holidays." She smiled and leaned up to kiss him.

"Yeah you better." Finn smirked, holding her close to him.

"I will. I just hope I have the right grades to get in."

"Course you will. Now, I have a plan to work on, see ya later." He smirked, kissed her again before turning on the spot and walking in the opposite direction.

Bex just rolled her eyes, watched him leave and started to make her way to her form room to find Jess and Vicki.

"Bex!" Jess shouted when she spotted her sister.

Bex turned her head in the direction of her and walked over to her, smiling.

"Budgen's decided he's gonna give us our results at registration." Jess commented

"Nice to know he wants to get it over and done with then." Bex remarked.

"It's Budgen. He'll do anything to get out of doing any work. Especially on the last day of term."

Both girls laughed.

"Come on, then, let's start making our way there, Quicker we get that done, the quicker we can find Vicki and attempt to pull her away from Ronan for longer than five seconds." Bex smirked, linking arms with her sister.

"Yeah... Have to admit you and Finn ain't as bad as those two." Jess laughed as the two of them began walking.

"See? Told you we have self control." Bex smirked.

"Yeah... Amy Porter's not happy 'bout you pair though." Jess shrugged.

"I'm not worried about what Amy bloody Porter thinks. Sam's happy and moved on to Kyle, so she has no problem with it." Bex nodded slightly. "All she said to me was 'If you make each other happy then go for it.' And I intend to go for it and we are happy." She added with a smile.

"Good. And I know he'll look after you." Jess smiled.

"As long as I've got yours, Harry's and mum's approval, that's all I care about." Bex said. "If dad wants to be a prat about it then it just shows how much he cares doesn't it."

"Maybe he's worried, Bex..."

"Worried? He hasn't spoken to me since before the trial. When we see him in town he'd walk in the opposite direction, when we go to his he acts like I don't exist. He hasn't called us since to ask how we're both coping."

"Yeah I get it... point taken..." Jess sighed, coming to a stop outside their form room.

"He knows where we are." Bex looked at her.

"I said alright... He's a prat and you're moving on and don't give a damn." Jess smiled. "I dunno why you can't just do another year here. Say you got held back or something."

"When else am I going to get offered a free place at uni?" Bex raised an eyebrow.

Jess had to agree there. "Gonna miss you though. We only just got you back and now you're gonna leave us again." She pouted.

"I'll be back at weekends and holidays." Bex smiled.

"Yeah I know." Jess smiled.

"Anyway I dunno if I'm gonna get in yet," Bex smiled.

"Right, in you go, backsides on seats and not a word from any of you!" Grantley Budgen said dryly, following his class inside. "I expect you'll all want to know if you passed or failed. Judging by the look of you I'd say the majority of you failed."

The remark caused the entire class to start talking and shouting as they took their seats.

"Yes alright! I said silence and I meant it!" Budgen said, shuffling the envelopes on his desk before picking them up and started to hand them out.

"Let me see then!" Jess grinned as both girls opened their envelopes.

"Let me have a look first!" Bex laughed, scanning the piece of paper in her hand before swapping with her sister.

"You did great." Jess said, leaning over and hugging Bex.

"So did you." Bex grinned, hugging back.

Once the register was called, everyone just passed the time talking about what their plans were over the holidays and what they were going to do afterward.

Everyone stood up when the bell went for first period.

"Yay, Maths with Mr Stones..." Bex said sarcastically.

"Cheer up it's your last day. Anyway he won't be here next term. Mum's saying she's getting someone else." Jess laughed. "If you leave you won't have Mr Mead to look at in science. Think of what you're missing, woman!"

"Maybe he or she will be better than that plank." Bex smirked. "And excuse me I do not want your cast-offs."

"The most stupidest person on the planet could be better than him. It's a wonder we got the grades we did with a teacher like him. And speaking of cast-offs. You have Finn Sharkey. Say no more there, sis." Jess rolled her eyes with a smirk as they both walked into the maths classroom.

"You can hardly call a couple of days a relationship, Jessica." Bex smirked.

"Very funny." Jess said dryly and both of them sat at the back of the room with Vicki, and the three of them began discussing their results as everyone else came into the room and took their seats, only stopping their discussion to say they were present for the register.

"So, any word from Ronan?" Bex asked with a knowing smirk.

"You told her?" Vicki looked at Jess.

"She didn't have to. I heard him bragging to Finn about it."

"I'm gonna kill him." Vicki laughed.

"Ooh!" Bex and Jess laughed.

"Get in there girl!" Bex smirked.

"And just for that I'll kill Finn too!" Vicki smirked.

"So come on, give us the details. Where did he take ya?" Jess said.

"We went to see a film, then he took me out for a meal and then we went back to his." Vicki said with a smile and a shrug as though it was something she did all the time.

"Vicki McDonald you dirty little stop out!" Jess laughed.

"Oh and you've never done it!" Vicki teased.

"Oh yeah, typical Virgin Mary, this one, in her own head!" Bex teased.

"Says Miss Innocent." Jess smirked.

Bex raised an eyebrow and stuck her two fingers up at her, laughing. "If we're gonna talk about sex on the first date, I have plenty to say, Jessica."

"I'm sure you do, Rebecca." Jess laughed and stood up as the bell went. "Right, let's go find your boyfriend and go watch hers make an even bigger idiot of himself than he already is."

"Oi, less of it!" Bex laughed, standing with Vicki and they all made their way down to the auditorium.


	7. Tragedy and Insecurity

7.

"Karen, where are you?" Chris asked, he was on the phone to Karen.

"I'm on the way to the hospital with Tom and the kids, Chris... Finn's had an accident." Karen said. She couldn't help but feel guilty. He was supposed to be in her care and now he could possibly be paralysed or worse.

"Is he alright?" Chris asked, concerned.

"I don't know... He fell from the bridge after he pulled Denzil Kelly to safety. Amazingly he was breathing, but he's with Sam now in the back of an ambulance. Don't say anything to anyone else. I can't have an entire school in panic and hysteria, especially Bex." Karen explained, and even contemplating getting him to get Finn's parents on the phone, but knew from what Chris had told her that they probably wouldn't care enough.

"What do you want me to say?"

"I'm sure you'll think of something..."

"You just make sure he's alright. He's a strong lad he is." Chris said. "Don't worry about the school I'll deal with it."

"Thank you Chris." Karen said softly and hung up the phone leaving herself with her thoughts, not even registering if Tom was talking to her or not. If he was He just simply gave up for now.

"Do you think he might have something to do with that stupid prank of Denzil's and that's why he's not back?" Bex looked over at her sister, who was checking herself in the mirror in the girls' toilets.

"No... I don't think he'd be that stupid. He might have gone to talk him down or something." Jess said, pausing applying a fresh coat of lipgloss to turn to Bex. "He'll be fine. And if he has done something stupid, I'll kill him for you."

Bex smiled a little.

"Jess, Bex, are you in there?" came Chris Mead's voice from outside.

"Yeah we're in here. We're just about to go to lesson don't worry." Jess called, putting her things back in her bag, linking arms with Bex and then walked out.

"Right, erm, well I'm sure you've heard of Denzil's latest thing for attention. Your mum's just dealing with that and then she'll be back." Chris said.

"Okay." Jess nodded, thinking nothing of it and both girls walked off in the direction of their next lesson.

Chris gave a sigh, thankful that he'd managed to successfully lie to one of his sharpest students.

Bex, of course, wasn't fooled. She knew something wasn't right, but she kept quiet about her worries.

The rest of the school day passed in a blur for her, all she wanted was to know if Finn was okay. She'd guessed that he'd gone after Denzil, because he hadn't come back, neither had Denzil. And it was that reason alone that told her something was wrong.

Their last lesson was science, and Bex could barely concentrate, even if they were only watching a film. She raised her hand to get Chris's attention.

"What is it, Bex?" Chris asked.

"Sir, I don't feel too good, can I go for some air?" she asked.

Not thinking anything of it, he nodded. "Sure, if you need anything come find me or go to the nurse." He told her.

Bex nodded, avoiding Jess, Ronan and Vicki's looks as she collected her stuff, got up and walked out.

"Not you, Jess. You and your sister aren't joined at the hip." Chris said as Jess was about to follow her.

Sulking, Jess sat back down.

Bex made her way outside and took out her phone, calling Finn, thinking that if she heard his voice she'd know he was alright. She sighed heavily and panic began to rise as it went straight to voicemail. Hanging up, she decided to call her mum and waited for her to answer.

"Bex, are you alright, love?" came the soft concerned voice of her mother.

"Just be honest with me, mum... is he okay?" Bex asked. Surely her mother wouldn't lie to her. "I'm not getting any answer from his phone."

"You won't do, love, you're meant to have your phone off in a hospital. He's fine, don't worry. I'd put him on but the doctors are just checking him over." It was a half truth, and felt that her daughter could try and deal with possible paralysis once he was awake, aware and not brain damaged.

The answer seemed to soothe Bex. "Okay. If he's done something stupid tell him I'll never talk to him again." She managed a smile.

"Will do, love. If he's still here by the time I leave to pick you lot up I'll come back with you." Karen promised. Inside she knew better than to hide things from her eldest child, her inquisitive nature and sharpness that she shared with her sister made hiding things from them impossible.

"Okay. Love you." Bex said.

"Love you too." Karen said and hung up, looking over at Tom who was looking at her. "Half lying to her is better than her worrying if he's alive or not."

Tom nodded in understanding. "You don't have to justify yourself to me, Karen."

"I know. But I feel like I have to. I feel like I should have done better."

"Come here." Tom said, and pulled her into a hug. "Not the best end to the school year is it."

"I must admit I've had better..." Karen managed a small laugh. "I should have known better than to tell Chris to keep it from her."

"You did the right thing, Karen. Did what you thought was best. No-one's gonna string you up for that." Tom said. "And this school's not ready to lose you yet."

"I'm not going anywhere unless I absolutely have to, Tom. Because I'm not ready to lose the school yet either." Karen smiled, stepping out of the hug.

"That's the Karen we know. Too much to ask the boss to join us all for a drink later? We're all gonna need it."

"I'll see how madam copes first." Karen smiled. "Waterloo Road is very lucky to have such a dedicated teacher like you, Tom."

"Well having to look after Chlo and Mika after Izzie... I've had to grow up." Tom smiled.

"And he's held up." Denzil spoke from his huddled position in one of the hard plastic chairs. "If he hadn't of helped mum out I dunno where we'd be."

"Josh looks up to you too. All that 'I wouldn't be seen dead with my parents out in public' is what happens with teenagers. Being his teacher doesn't help either. But he does look up to you." Karen said.

Tom smiled, saying nothing, always uncomfortable when this kind of attention was drawn to him. The only attention he preferred was getting his son's attention at home, standing in the classroom or whether he was buying the next round in the pub.


	8. It will be okay

8.

"Bex, listen, I haven't been entirely honest with you, love." Karen said as she walked across the car park with her eldest daughter, walking toward the hospital. "But I only did it so you wouldn't worry."

"Okay... What's up?" Bex questioned.

"When Finn climbed the bridge and pulled Denzil to safety, he couldn't get a grip for himself and he slipped and fell. He's alive, breathing and awake, but his injuries are too early to determine... he seems able to have a conversation and know who he and everyone else is, so he's not brain damaged and his memory isn't affected."

"Where is he?" Bex asked. Inside she was angry with her mother for lying and hiding it from her, but at the same time she understood why she did it.

Karen put her arm around her and they both walked into the hospital and to the room where Finn was. "I'll leave you two to it for a bit." She said softly.

Bex nodded and pushed open the door and entered the room. To her, the injured, pale boy in the bed wasn't her boyfriend, but as he turned his head to face her, and how he still managed to give her that smirk she loved, she knew it was him, and she made her way over to him.

"Didn't think you were gonna come." Finn said quietly.

"I didn't know how serious it was till about five or ten minutes ago." Bex said, holding his hand. "Mum kept it from me so I wouldn't worry... it only half worked."

"Couldn't just let him fall though..."

"Most other people wouldn't climb over and drag him over and risk their lives. What were you trying to prove? To show Sam you weren't a coward or to show the world you're not the prat everyone writes you off as?" she wanted to be angry with him, but she was more relieved he was okay.

"Bit of both I guess..." he admitted.

Bex sighed and gently kissed him.

Finn smiled and kissed back.

Bex smiled back and she sat on the edge of the bed, and lay down beside him resting her head on his shoulder, being careful not to knock any of the wires attached to him.

"So does this mean I'm forgiven?" Finn asked.

Bex just giggled and lightly hit him on the arm. "Fine, but do that to me again and I'll chuck you over it myself and I'll never speak to you again." She laughed.

Finn just smirked and kept his arm around her.

Karen watched through the window, smiling, and she decided to go join her colleagues at the pub and leave the teenagers to it.

_-end-_


End file.
